Written by Josh Barber.
Team GB cycled to eight medals, including four golds at the Track World Cup in Manchester.
With the shoes of Sir Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton to be filled many expected the last 15 months to have been fairly quiet for the Team GB squad. However it has gone from strength to strength with the likes of Victoria Williamson taking up the legacy that Pendleton and Hoy left behind.
The weekend started off with a bang on Friday evening as both the men’s and women’s pursuit teams won. Olympic champions Laura Trott, Dani King and Joanna Roswell along with world champion Elinor Barker twice broke their own world record in front of the sell-out crowd on their way to securing gold.
The men were not to be out done though, Olympic champions Ed Clancy and Steven Burke were joined by Andy Tennant and Owain Doull, qualifying fastest before beating the Australians in the final to win gold.
Britain’s business for the evening was far from done. Next to take to the stage was the pairing of Becky James and Victoria Williamson took silver in the team sprint behind Olympic champions Miriam Welte and Kristina Vogel of Germany.
There was time for Britain to clinch one more medal before proceedings finished for the evening. In the men’s team sprint three-time Olympic champion Jason Kenny, Philip Hindes and Matt Crampton raced to bronze against New Zealand.
With one gold medal not being enough Saturday saw Joanna Rowsell show her class in the individual event, to take gold from her Australian rival.
Not wanting to be shown up by her Team GB and Wiggle Honda teammate, double Olympic champion Laura Trott added the Omnuim title to the gold she earned on Friday by beating Canada’s Gillian Carleton by five points after victories in the scratch race and 500m time trial.
Trott may have took the headlines, however, Keirin world champion Becky James made it three in three days after she won silver in the discipline to add to her team sprint medal of the same colour and sprint bronze. With some already suggesting she is the Heir to ‘Queen’ Victoria’s throne.